No new suspects revealed in Gatwick drones case, a month on from the chaos

Gatwick Airport drones chaos: Latest on the investigation

NO NEW suspects have been revealed by police, a month after drone aircraft caused chaos at Gatwick.

More than 100,000 passengers had flights cancelled in the run-up to Christmas when the runway at the Sussex airport was closed over three days in December.

Before Christmas a Crawley couple were quizzed by police for 36 hours amid a media storm, but they were then released without charge.

Since then, police have announced no new arrests in connection with the incident, which saw unmanned drone aircraft being operated near the airport perimeter and the runway.

Chief Constable Giles York said his officers, the airport, the military and the government responded “quickly and robustly” to the “immediate threat to life” posed by the drones.

At a performance and accountability meeting hosted by Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne he updated the public on the progress of the investigation.

He said: “It was a deliberate and sustained act of criminal drone activity at Gatwick Airport that caused the disruption. It was designed to disrupt the airport.”

So far, the investigation has been centred around the damaged drone that was found near the airport perimeter, which is being tested by forensics experts.

The chief said officers carried out 800 extra shifts, and knocked on more than 1,000 doors to make enquiries to catch those responsible.

Meanwhile 17 sites around the airport have been searched in the investigation, and Gatwick Airport has offered a £50,000 reward for information about those responsible.

But, despite talking with residents, and with drone enthusiast groups, Mr York did not say any new arrests have been made.

He said: “My heart goes out to the thousands of people who were disrupted by this event.

“Police, government, military and other authorities responded quickly and robustly to mitigate the immediate risk to life and return the airport to stability.

“The capability to deal with such attacks nationally has been strengthened as a result of the incident.

“There was a comprehensive and tested plan to reduce the risk of drones, however the criminal use of drones is a challenge for us. The plan was implemented quickly.”

Mr York’s comments follow a difficult few weeks, where the force was branded “clueless” by national newspapers such as the Daily Mail.

There was some confusion from comments made by senior investigating officers who at first told journalists it was possible that there had been no drone activity at all, only to clarify hours later that there was strong evidence with scores of drone sightings, and the drone that was found near the perimeter.

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